Subjective Experiences of Mental Health Crisis Care in Emergency Departments: A Narrative Review of the Qualitative Literature

Helena Roennfeldt, Marianne Wyder, Louise Byrne, Nicole Hill, Rory Randall and Bridget Hamilton
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Helena Roennfeldt: Centre for Mental Health Nursing, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC 3010, Australia
Marianne Wyder: Research and Learning Network, Metro South Addiction and Mental Health Services, Brisbane, QLD 4122, Australia
Louise Byrne: School of Management, RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC 3000, Australia
Nicole Hill: Department of Social Work, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC 3010, Australia
Rory Randall: Centre for Mental Health Nursing, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC 3010, Australia
Bridget Hamilton: Centre for Mental Health Nursing, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC 3010, Australia

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 18, 1-22

Abstract: Mental health presentations to the emergency department (ED) have increased, and the emergency department has become the initial contact point for people in a mental health crisis. However, there is mounting evidence that the ED is not appropriate nor effective in responding to people in mental health crises. Insufficient attention has been paid to the subjective experience of people seeking support during a mental health crisis. This review aims to describe the qualitative literature involving the subjective experiences of people presenting to the ED during a mental health crisis. The method was guided by Arksey and O’Malley’s framework for scoping studies and included keyword searches of PsycINFO, CINAHL, Medline and Embase. A narrative analysis, drawing on the visual tool of journey mapping, was applied to summarise the findings. Twenty-three studies were included. The findings represent the experience of accessing EDs, through to the impact of treatment. The review found points of opportunity that improve people’s experiences and characteristics associated with negative experiences. The findings highlight the predominance and impact of negative experiences of the ED and the incongruence between the expectations of people presenting to the ED and the experience of treatment.

Keywords: mental health crisis; emergency department; subjective experiences; mental health emergency care (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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